The red flowers typically have a diameter of 50–90 cm (19+1⁄2–35+1⁄2 in) and smell awfully of rotten meat to attract flies for pollination.

This species has some claim to being the world's largest flower, for although the average size of R. arnoldii is greater than the average R. kerrii, there have been two recent specimens of R. kerrii of exceptional size: One specimen found in the Lojing Highlands of peninsular Malaysia on April 7, 2004 by Prof. Dr. Kamarudin Mat-Salleh, and Mat Ros measured 111 cm (43+1⁄2 in) in width,[1] while another found in 2007 in Kelantan State, peninsular Malaysia by Dr. Gan Canglin measured 112 cm (44 in).

The plant is a parasite to the wild grapes of the genus Tetrastigma (T. leucostaphylum, T. papillosum and T. quadrangulum), but only the flowers are visible.

Though already naturally rare, tourists trying to get close to the flower for photos easily trample the host plant or young buds.

The species is named after the Irish botanist, Arthur Francis George Kerr, who collected plants extensively in Thailand.